For breeders of poultry, two main aspects are important: egg production and meat characteristics of geese, chickens or ducks. Most often it is hens that are found on domestic farmsteads, and the choice of bird breed depends on the specific purpose of its rearing. At the same time, there are some universal options that, along with high egg production, can surprise with rather high meat qualities. One of these breeds is Master Gray, about the features of the content of which at home, you can learn from this article.
History of origin and description
Chickens Master Gray or Master Grise - representatives of meat and egg breed, which were bred in Hungary for home breeding, which does not require supplementation of the diet with any additives. 
In the old days and nowadays, the company Hubbadr (Hungary), which has its branches in the USA and France, is engaged in breeding these birds, which is why many believe that the first chickens are of French origin.
Check out the best breeds of meat and egg chickens.In fact, the first chicks appeared at one of the experienced factories of the above company, although this recognition was first won among French farmers.
The main breeding goal was to obtain the possibility of growing good meat and egg chickens on ordinary farm land, and not only in the specialized conditions of poultry farms.Did you know? The company "Hubbadr" for about 100 years has been breeding more and more new breeds of poultry, and after breeding Master Gray, experts also created two of its subspecies: Master Gray M and Master Gray S. The latter appeared by crossing males of the original breed with Redbro females S.When describing chickens of this breed, it should be noted their good egg production. The first testicles can be collected already on reaching females of four months, and in general their number reaches 200 pieces per year.
However, in addition to this, birds also have a good weight indicator: already in three months they weigh up to 3 kg, and roosters often reach 7 kg. These unpretentious and hardy chickens also have an attractive appearance. They have a gray-white plumage, due to which the breed got its name.Try to raise such interesting breeds of chickens at home: Dominant, Sussex, Wyandot, black bearded, Fireball, Adler silver, Rhode Island, Poltava, Minorca, Andalusian blue, Orpington, Kuchinsky jubilee chickens, Leggorn, Cochin chickens, Brahms and Zagorian salami .It is also distinguished by a rather high survival rate of young stock (up to 98%), which means that when breeding such birds you will constantly have many eggs and cockerel meat.
Breed characteristic
Contrary to popular belief, Master Gray is not a pure breed, but a cross (a hybrid of lines and breeds), so it is quite difficult to bring out new representatives with similar characteristics at home. 
A distinctive feature of these chickens (if we compare them with the popular Kuchinsky or Adlersky chickens) is a meek disposition and less fearfulness. They are more obedient, calm and focused on people. In some cases, there is generally no need for other decorative pets.
Master Gray is characterized by a large stature, massive legs of medium length and various colors, with a predominance of gray.
The motley coloring is obtained as a result of the chaotic alternation of white and gray feathers, and a clearer pattern appears in the neck area and at the edges of the wings. 
Towards the middle of the body, it becomes not so clear and the gray areas merge with white dots. Comb and earrings painted in scarlet or bright red.
However, if you succeed in acquiring really bright representatives of the breed, then you will receive not only beautiful monasteries of the farmstead, but also very productive hens that bring in large eggs (60-70 g each).
Representatives of the breed are also good and caring.: they whimper in time, do not fall down from the clutch and attentively treat the chicks, although the offspring each time more and more degenerate and, due to characteristic signs, move towards one of the parents.
Where to keep chickens?
Given the unpretentiousness of chickens described cross, it is logical to assume that they do not require any special conditions of detention. 
That is, you can safely do without expensive additives to the main feed and special equipment for the supply of water and feed. The bird can be kept both on the floor and in the cages, and it also behaves well on the run.
Important! When the chickens are kept in cages, the indicator of meat is twice as high as with the floor placement of chickens (1 m² more chickens will fit exactly in the cage).
Place for walking
Despite the fact that breeders allow the possibility of keeping the cross in cages, a full-fledged house with the possibility of walking will be a more optimal solution to the problem of the bird's dwelling. 
By fencing off part of your plot, especially if there are a large number of different herbs growing on it, you will not only allow the chickens to develop well due to physical activity, but also contribute to their independent production of all the vitamins from the local vegetation.
As for the size of the walking range, which, by the way, can be both stationary and mobile, then usually for a comfortable accommodation of 10 individuals there will be enough area of 16 m². 
It is also better if the structure is located away from the paths and constant attention of people, which will reduce anxiety of chickens (stresses contribute to a decrease in egg production).
The selected area should not be constantly under the scorching sun, shade one part of it, giving your pets a place where they can hide on a hot day. Do not forget that, like in the house, fresh water must always be in the range.
Requirements for the house
Any chicken coop, regardless of the breed of its inhabitants, must meet a number of specific requirements that will help protect the bird from disease. 
Taking into account, the undemandingness of Master Gray for the harmonious development of representatives of the cross will be enough dry, clean place with constant ventilation, and for every 10 m² should be no more than 20 chickens.
Learn how to make a chicken coop yourself at your summer cottage.Also take care in advance about the comfortable life of the bird in the winter time, that is, when building it, warm it up immediately or use additional heat sources (this way you save the bird's high egg production throughout the year). As for additional heating, it is not necessary in the room.
Master Gray is equally well tolerant of both heat and cold, but like other relatives, he endures drafts badly. By covering the floor with straw, sawdust or shavings, you can achieve a constant temperature not lower than +2 ° C, and this value will not become lower even in the most severe cold. 
The fact is that in the process of decomposition of the lower layers of the flooring, a rather large amount of heat is released, sufficient for the comfortable life of your chickens, so that they will be carried even in winter.
Mandatory elements of the house are perches and nests. The dimensions of the latter should be at least 35 cm wide and 40 cm long, although taking into account the size of the hens of this breed, both values are better to increase by 2-3 cm. Also take care of the arrangement of the ash-sand baths with which chickens can clean their feathers.
Feeding rules
To feed any poultry of one grain is not enough, because for normal growth, development and good egg production, nutrition should be as balanced as possible. 
Consider options for rations for chickens and adults of the Master Gray breed.
Chickens
From the first days of their life, young animals can be easily fed with mixed fodders, possibly supplementing them with vegetables and green grass. At two weeks of age, wet mash and food waste are gradually introduced into the diet. 
Otherwise, the requirements are the same as for keeping adult birds: fresh water should always be in the shed, and fine gravel and sand can be used to improve digestion.
We advise you to read how to cook feed for poultry with your own hands.During the period of active growth of chickens, it is equally important to use chalk, milk cream and shells, which are added to food in ground form.
Important! The peculiarity of breeding these chickens is that at first the young birds grow up, and only after reaching 5-6 months they begin to gain width, gradually reaching the size of an adult bird.Starting from six weeks of age, when feeding the young Master Gray, ground wheat or barley is gradually added.
Taking into account the high growth rate of chickens during the ripening period, when caring for them, you need to be prepared for the fact that their feed consumption will also increase several times (1.5 kg of feed usually falls on 1 kg of weight gained by the bird). 
No need to save, because even a small hunger strike will negatively affect the development of chickens. Provide the bird with constant access to the feeders and feed there.
Adult bird
Grain, fish meal, greens, pumpkin, corn, carrots and other vegetables should be present in the diet of the already formed representatives of Master Gray. To improve digestion, shell rock, crushed egg shells and chalk are often used. 
The feeding of an adult livestock, according to the rules, should be carried out several times a day, and in the morning and in the evening the bird is given dry food (that is, grain), and in the middle of the day they are replaced by greens and mash. It will also be good to regularly produce chickens for walking with fresh green grass, where they will be able to find useful plants or eat worms.
Disease resistance
When creating the described hybrid, scientists made every effort to produce extremely hardy birds that are resistant to various diseases and infections. I must say that they succeeded, so that illnesses attack Master Gray's cross very rarely. 
However, this does not mean that you should forget about prevention and rely only on the genetic stability of the organism of your wards. Strong immunity will not protect them from vitamin deficiency or the invasion of parasites.
Given that these problems often lead to cannibalism (especially when shedding), the inspection of the bird should be a regular exercise. 
In addition to the chickens themselves, the chicken coop should be regularly disinfected, which, at least a little, will reduce the risk of a possible pest invasion.
To prevent the development of beriberi, it will be enough to choose the right diet, optimally balancing it to get all the vital vitamins and trace elements.
Breeding characteristics
As we noted earlier, it is almost impossible to get full-fledged offspring at home, with the entire set of parental characteristics, since any heterotic breed does not provide for the transfer of maternal signs to offspring. 
Therefore, for the breeding of these birds, the owners of agricultural land will have to purchase ready-made chickens or hatching eggs of hens of this breed in the nurseries.
You will also be interested to learn how to grow chickens in an incubator.In principle, this cannot be called a bad decision, since the percentage of survival of young stock is quite high, which means you will not waste money on the wind.
Important! When buying a bird, pay attention only to proven, large farms that know exactly all the subtleties of the Master Gray breeding technique. Visually determine all the qualities of acquired chickens and their compliance with the characteristics of the cross can only be after the first molt.Also, when breeding chickens, you need to know that record egg-laying rates are observed only in the first year after it began, and as the birds grow older, the hens lose their positions.
That is, their productive period is very, very short (from the second year onwards, this figure is reduced by 30-40%, which is why experts advise to replace the livestock at the end of its peak performance).To strengthen the immune system of your chickens, check out the Ryabushka poultry vitamin and mineral complex.It is important to pay attention to the period of molting birds. To accurately determine the time of this process is extremely difficult, since its beginning depends on the time of the appearance of chickens into the world and the conditions of their future life.
Usually the beginning of the molt coincides with the end of the autumn period, but in some chickens it may begin earlier or later, often delaying for the whole winter. 
The advantageous advantage of this cross-country is the continuation of egg production even at such a difficult time for the birds, only the owner must follow enough nutrients in their diets, additionally using fish oil and various vitamin supplements.
Of course, year-round egg production is not the only advantage of Master Gray, and compared to other breeds, these chickens have something to surprise you with.
Did you know? The laying of eggs is performed by chickens only in the light (in the daytime or in the presence of block lighting), so if the time to postpone the egg came at night, the birds will wait until morning.
Advantages and disadvantages of the breed
Consider some of the beneficial advantages of Master Gray cross-country, which made him the favorite poultry option of many breeders:
- Bird quickly gains weight, and there is a rapid increase in muscle mass, not fat.
- All representatives are quite economical. in terms of feed intake (of course, not in a period of active growth).
- The resulting meat is very tender and is characterized by excellent taste properties, however, the taste of large eggs is also at the height.
- There are no special requirements for conditions of detention. and livestock breeding (Master Gray is similar in its basic characteristics to ordinary chickens, except that even in the photo their large sizes are noticeable).
- There are no special dietary requirements. and feeding regimen.
- Disease resistant livestock and temperature changes.
- These chickens are non-conflicting., able to get along well with another bird and are characterized by a calm attitude to man.
- Chickens of this cross - good hens, thanks to which they can be used to incubate other eggs.
- And finally, the representatives of the Master Gray have a very beautiful appearancethat allows them to become a real decoration of any compound.
As for the minuses of breeding such a bird, then one can not forget about the following:- The birds described are cross, not breed, which means it is simply impossible to breed them at home, because the resulting offspring will not be like any of the parents (you will have to buy new representatives every year).
- Compared to broilers, young animals are not so quickly gaining weight (although, if you look at them, broilers belong to the purely meat version, while Grays also give a lot of testicles).
